''Warburgia ugandensis'', also known as Ugandan greenheart or simply greenheart tree, is a species of evergreen tree native to East Africa. Countries in which the plant species is found include Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. The wood is resistant to insect attack and very strong. It was commonly used for the yoke pole of

ox-wagon An ox-wagon or bullock wagon is a four-wheeled vehicle pulled by oxen (draught cattle). It was a traditional form of transport, especially in Southern Africa but also in New Zealand and Australia. Ox-wagons were also used in the United States. T ...

s, the Disselboom. Early Indian immigrants to Kenya, working on the construction of the railway, used the leaves to flavor their curries before the chilli plant was commonly introduced. The flavor is hot and subtly different from chillies. Extracts of ''W. ugandensis'' have been reported to show some

antimalarial Antimalarial medications or simply antimalarials are a type of antiparasitic chemical agent, often naturally derived, that can be used to treat or to prevent malaria, in the latter case, most often aiming at two susceptible target groups, young ...

, antifungal, and

antibacterial An antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the treatment and prevention ...

properties ''

in vitro ''In vitro'' (meaning in glass, or ''in the glass'') studies are performed with microorganisms, cells, or biological molecules outside their normal biological context. Colloquially called " test-tube experiments", these studies in biology ...

'' or in

animal model An animal model (short for animal disease model) is a living, non-human, often genetic-engineered animal used during the research and investigation of human disease, for the purpose of better understanding the disease process without the risk of ha ...

s. Unsustainable overharvesting of the bark reduced the population of the ''longifolia'' subspecies to the Rondo Forest Reserve in

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...

, which prompted the IUCN to list it as vulnerable in its Red List of Threatened Species.

References

Canellaceae Medicinal plants Plants described in 1906 Flora of Uganda Taxobox binomials not recognized by IUCN {{Magnoliid-stub